Chapter 2: Literature and Technology Review – Instructional Guide

Purpose of Chapter 2

This chapter lays the academic and technical foundation for your project. It shows that your application is not built in isolation—it responds to a gap in knowledge, practice, or tooling. Your goal here is to critically examine what has already been done, justify your design direction, and demonstrate awareness of current technologies and methods.

Chapter Structure

2.1 Introduction to the Review

What is the purpose of this chapter and how is it structured?

Content Expectations:

  • Briefly explain why reviewing literature and technology is essential to your project.
  • Outline what the reader can expect in this chapter (academic review, tech tools, gap analysis).

2.2 Academic Literature Review

What does the research say about the problem or related solutions?

Content Expectations:

  • Summarize 4–8 key academic or industry sources.
  • Discuss frameworks, design methods, usability concerns, security considerations, or domain-specific studies.
  • Highlight patterns, limitations, or themes.
  • Use APA7 citation style throughout.
  • Focus on synthesis, not just summary.

Tip: Organize by themes, chronology, or approaches—not by article.

2.3 Review of Existing Tools or Solutions

What systems, applications, or methods already exist to solve this problem?

Content Expectations:

  • Examine 3–5 existing applications, platforms, or open-source tools.
  • Describe their features, architecture, strengths, and weaknesses.
  • Optionally include screenshots or comparison tables.
  • Discuss how your project is different or adds value.

2.4 Technology Landscape

What technologies could be used to implement your solution?

Content Expectations:

  • Present and compare relevant tools, platforms, frameworks, and APIs.
  • Mention programming languages, cloud services, libraries, databases, etc.
  • Explain the pros and cons of each for your use case.

Example Topics:

  • Why Flask over Django?
  • React vs. Angular for the front end
  • Firebase vs. PostgreSQL for data storage

2.5 Gap Analysis and Design Justification

Why is your approach needed, and how does it improve on the status quo?

Content Expectations:

  • Clearly identify gaps in existing solutions or research (functionality, usability, access, scalability, etc.).
  • Show how your design is novel, more efficient, or more user-centered.
  • Tie this section back to Chapter 1 (Problem Statement and Objectives).

2.6 Summary of the Chapter

What did we learn from the review?

Content Expectations:

  • Recap major findings from the literature and technology survey.
  • Highlight how the insights will influence your design (lead into Chapter 3).
  • Reinforce the rationale for your technology and architectural choices.

Checklist for Chapter 2 Completion

CriterionComplete? (✓)
Strong literature synthesis, not summary
Real-world tools/applications evaluated
Technology options compared with reasoning
Gap clearly stated and justified
Logical transition into the design chapter

Suggested Word Count: 1800–2500 words

  • Include visuals: comparison tables, diagrams, or charts where helpful.
  • APA-formatted in-text citations and references required.

Chapter 2: Literature and Technology Review – Fillable Template

Application Design Report
Prepared by: ____________________________________
Student ID: ____________  Date: ______________

2.1 Introduction to the Review
Briefly explain what this chapter covers and why the review is important.

2.2 Academic Literature Review
Summarize and synthesize the key academic and professional work related to your project.

  • Source 1: _________________________________________________________________
    Summary & Insight: ________________________________________________________
  • Source 2: _________________________________________________________________
    Summary & Insight: ________________________________________________________
  • Source 3: _________________________________________________________________
    Summary & Insight: ________________________________________________________
  • Additional Notes:

2.3 Review of Existing Tools or Solutions
List and evaluate 3–5 tools, products, or platforms.

Tool / PlatformKey FeaturesStrengthsLimitations

How does your application improve on or differ from these?

2.4 Technology Landscap
Compare the technologies you considered for your solution (e.g., frameworks, libraries, platforms).

  • Front-End: _____________________ (Why?)
  • Back-End: ______________________ (Why?)
  • Database: ______________________ (Why?)
  • Hosting / Cloud: __________________ (Why?)
  • Tools/Libraries Used: ________________________________________________

 2.5 Gap Analysis and Design Justification
Clearly state the gap in current solutions. Why is your design needed?

2.6 Summary of the Chapter
Recap key findings and lead into your next chapter (design/requirements).

Completion Checklist

Requirement✓
4+ academic or scholarly sources reviewed
3+ tools/systems evaluated and compared
Technologies researched and compared
Gaps identified and discussed
APA citations included
Summary clearly leads into Chapter 3